Kirtland High School Class of 1972 Celebrates 50th Reunion
Members of the Kirtland High School class of 1972 came back to the place they once called home when they visited the Kirtland campus on August 7.
The class kicked off their 50th high school reunion weekend by gathering at the Kirtland Community Center on August 6 to talk and reconnect with one another. The next day approximately 50 alumni took a tour of Kirtland’s campus.
Morris Beverage ’72, president of Lakeland Community College, said it was a good turnout as the class only had 90 graduating students. “Many of us have known each other since kindergarten,” he said. “We were the first class to go through all three grades in the new middle school.”
Beverage had a part in planning and publicizing the reunion. A newsletter was sent to class members outlining what happened in history during their time in high school, 50 years before they started high school, and now, 50 years after. “We are looking at a spectrum of 100 years of local history,” said Beverage. “It’s who we are, who we became, and who the class of 2022 will become.”
During the tour, alumni saw how the facilities are now all connected as opposed to stand alone buildings. Beverage said his class saw more advanced technology that was added to classrooms during the renovations, noting that the concept of the library has drastically changed.
“Everybody appreciated how the school district remained viable for its students,” he said. “The district has kept up with changes in an environment that’s constantly changing.”
Of course, the class was glad to see that some of the traditional school locations remained like the gyms and hallways. That familiarity was felt among the students themselves as they returned to their old stomping grounds.
“There is a level of comfort in being with high school chums that you carry with you to future reunions,” Beverage said. “That’s a lesson for future graduating classes; you develop a network that will stay with you for life.”
